Teodor Currentzis and MusicAeterna Face Scrutiny Over Russian Ties

Salzburg, Austria-Theodor Kurrenzis is revered as one of the most original voices of classical music and is a rebellious conductor who can bring a fresh breath to his famous works. In this European Capital of Culture, where artists, agents and Impresarios gather every summer, he is ubiquitous and his name is on banners and pamphlets. His fans travel from all over the world to hear his performance.

But his music isn’t the only topic this summer. Salzburg Festival, One of the best events of classical music. Kurrenzis and his ensemble, Music Aterna, who are directing the new dual bill here from Tuesday on Bartok’s “Bluebeard’s Castle” and Carl Orff’s “Drama of the End of Time”, for another reason. It is attracting attention. It’s a relationship with Russia.

During the war in Ukraine, Currentzis and Music Aeterna, licensed by the United States and other countries, were attacked for relying on the state-owned Russian institution VTB Bank, the main sponsor of the ensemble. Currentzis and the ensemble were accused of being silent in the war and criticized for working with fellow Russian President Vladimir Puttin, including those sitting on the board of directors of the Music Aeterna Foundation.

This scrutiny has complicated the career of Currentzis, one of the most sought after stars in the industry. And it rattled the 102-year-old Salzburg Festival, whose leaders stood by Music Aeterna, despite being shunned by other cultural groups.

“It’s not that I’m a coward, I’m very sensitive,” said festival artistic director Marx Hinterhauser in an interview. “We are not for Putin. We will never discuss it.”

Currentzis and his musicians are now at the center of the debate about how cultural institutions should treat artists associated with Russian institutions. Many have cut off relationships with Putin’s close associates, including conductor Valery Gergiev, a longtime friend and prominent supporter of the Russian president, who was once a fixture at the Salzburg Festival.

But other Western institutions have gone too far after canceling performances by Russian artists unrelated to Putin, and even to some who have spoken against Russia’s invasion of Ukraine. Has been criticized.

Bartok Orff’s double feature features the Music Aeterna Choir. And its appearance with Currentzis in the pit has already attracted protests from politicians, artists and activists. They say the festival should not provide a forum for Music Aeterna during the war.

“He belongs to Putin’s system,” Austrian Ukrainian ambassador Vasil Kiminets said in an interview. “He hasn’t criticized this brutal war, but he has the chance to appear in one of the most famous stages in Europe and perhaps in the world.”

Evgeny Kissin, a revered pianist who plays frequently in Salzburg, does not object to Kurrenzis’ appearance in a Western orchestra, but says there is a problem with the relationship between Music Aterna and the Russian government. rice field.

“In the current situation, groups funded by the Russian state should not be allowed to perform in the civilized world,” said Kissin, who was born in Moscow and is now based in Prague, “in Ukraine” in Russia. “Criminal War” was quoted.

Currentzis declined to comment through his representative.

Since establishing Music Aeterna in Siberia in 2004, Currentzis has been trying to go against the label. He is known as an uncompromising classical musician, but he also has a reputation as a punk, goth and anarchist. Born in Athens, he went to Russia to study music in his twenties and now has a Russian passport. (Putin gave him citizenship by presidential directive in 2014, Russian news media report.. )

Kurrenzis began his career as an outsider trying to build art centers away from the traditional bases of Moscow and St. Petersburg, such as the Novosibirsk Opera House in Siberia and the industrial city of Perm. He confronted Russian authorities in 2017, including when his friend and collaborator, Kirill Celebré Renikov, one of Russia’s most prominent theater directors, was detained in Moscow.

Recently, Currentzis has worked to gain support for its establishment and has found a partner for VTB Bank. It has helped fund Music Aeterna’s concert and recording projects since 2016. With the support of the bank, Currentzis opened an ensemble base in St. Petersburg in 2019.

The February 24 invasion of Ukraine coincided with his 50th birthday. That same day he conducted a birthday concert with Music Aeterna in St. Petersburg, where he conducted Beethoven’s 9th Symphony.According to the Russians, he replayed the same piece in Moscow two days later in front of an audience of more than 1,500. News report..

Shortly thereafter, the ensemble began to face questions about its benefactor, the performance at the Philharmonic de Paris was canceled, and the performance at the Bavarian State Opera was postponed to 2024. In Vienna, a charity concert scheduled for April in support of Ukraine has been cancelled. Activists and officials (including Ambassador Kiminets) opposed the idea of ​​featuring Russian artists at Ukrainian events. rear.

Some presenters were concerned about hosting an ensemble associated with several prominent Russian officials, including VTB Bank Chairman Andrey Kostin. Alexander Begrov, Governor of St. Petersburg. And Elvira Nabiullina, President of the Central Bank of Russia. They are all members of the Board of Directors of the Music Aeterna Cultural Initiative Support Fund.

Others believed that if they sympathized with Currentzis and his musicians and expressed their views on the war, they could be punished in Russia. As criticism of the group increased, they opposed the aggression and were pressured to secure funding outside Russia.

In March, the German SWR Symphony Orchestra, headed by Currentzis, issued a statement calling for peace, although it did not criticize the Russian government or Putin. “Theodor Currentzis and members of the SWR Symphonie Orchestra clearly support a common appeal for peace and reconciliation.” statement Said.

Louwrens Langevoort is the Arts and Managing Director of the Cologne Philharmonic. In an interview, Currentzis longed for an “ideal world” where he could work in both Russia and the West while smoking in the dressing room after appearing in the SWR Symphony in late March. I remembered.

“He really knew he had to do something,” Langevoort said. “Pressure came from all sides, and he-for the safety reasons of all parties living in Russia-did not make any declaration.”

Even some of Currentzis’ most stubborn supporters are pushing the ensemble to find new supporters. Among them is Matthias Naske, Artistic Director of the Wiener Konzerthaus. “His hall will not be involved in Music Aeterna until the orchestra’s completely independent funding is secured,” he said in an interview. He added that Currentzis would still be allowed to play there.

“Teodor Currentzis is a great artist who harnesses the power of music to support humanitarian values,” he said. “He is responsible and he sticks to the ensemble he has built up in Russia. It is wrong to punish him for not abandoning his musician.”

In Salzburg, festival leaders have sought to counter the accusations of supporting Russia’s cultural objectives. The opening ceremony of the festival on Tuesday included the work of Ukraine’s most famous living composer, Valentin Silvestrov. The keynote speech by Bulgarian and German author Ilija Trojanow was entitled “Tone of War, Key to Peace”.

Hinterhäuser said he didn’t want to force Music Aeterna artists to speak against the war.

“They are not soldiers. They are not responsible for what is happening,” he said. “It’s not a collective sin.”

Relations with other Russians at the festival are also being scrutinized. One of the sponsors of the double production is the GES-2 House of Culture, which is affiliated with Russian oligarch Leonid Mikhelson. He was sanctioned by Britain and Canada after the invasion, but was crucial to Salzburg, not the European Union.

Kurrenzis, who made his debut in Salzburg with Mozart’s Requiem and “La Clementza Ditito” in 2017, sought to return the focus to his art. At last week’s festival, he conducted the performance of Shostakovich’s “Babin Yar” symphony, featuring members of the Music Aeterna Choir and the Gustav Mahler Youth Orchestra.

Alexander Melaviglia Crivelli, the orchestra’s artistic and managing director, said he asked the players if they would like to have a concert after the invasion. He recalled that although Ukrainian musicians expressed concern about appearing with Russian artists, almost everyone wanted to play.

“We strongly believe that exclusion and cancellation are wrong in art and education,” he said.

Defenders of Kurrenzis pointed out the performance of the Shostakovich symphony, written to recall the 1941 Jewish slaughter near Kyiv by the Nazis, as a statement of his view of the current war. However, the performance was planned long ago, and Currentzis made no statement at the concert.

At the end of the last move, he held the hall in a long silence. He then smiled when the audience erupted in a standing ovation that lasted more than seven minutes.

Joshua Barone contributed reports from Salzburg, Austria and Milana Mazaeva, New York.